In the fabrication of modern semiconductor devices or integrated circuits (ICs), one or more contact pads (e.g., bond pads) are provided to electrically contact the device or circuit to/from the outside. Pad treatment processes (also referred to as pad conditioning processes) are needed to provide defined pad surfaces that may, for example, be insensitive to corrosion by environmental conditions and suitable for further processing such as wafer thinning, backside metallization, wire bonding, etc.